Mumbai's Andheri bridge collapse: 5 hurt, train services hit; probe ordered

A section of a foot overbridge in Mumbai caved in over the Western Railway (WR) tracks during Tuesday morning's peak hours following incessant rain, leaving five persons injured, and creating a scare among the commuters, an official said.

The crash has affected Mumbai's lifeline -- the suburban train services, which ferries around eight million commuters daily.

The injured, who include one woman, have been admitted to the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation's R N Cooper Hospital in Vile Parle, a BMC official said. One of them is critical.

Railway Minister Piyush Goyal has ordered an inquiry into the incident.

Heavy overnight rains and waterlogging in many areas is suspected to be the cause of the crash of the structure, known as the Gokhale Bridge, on S V Road, which connects Andheri East and Andheri West.

There were no immediate confirmation whether the injured were commuters or pedestrians. Rescue operations continued to save those believed to be trapped under the debris.

Work was also on to remove the debris from the WR tracks which blocked services in both directions, hitting hard the Mumbai commuters bound for their offices.

According to WR spokesperson C N K David, the portion of the bridge crashed at around 7.30 a.m. on the southern-end of the Andheri platform numbers 7-8.

The falling bridge damaged a portion of the platform roof, blocked the railway lines and damaged the high-tension electric wires and overhead power equipments, he added.